Constitution of the Republic of Wensleydale
REPUBLIC OF WENSLEYDALE We, the citizens of the Republic of Wensleydale, in order to establish the region of Wensleydale as a state governed under the principles of justice and democracy, to ensure a heritage of liberty and equality for ourselves and our posterity, do hereby enact the CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF WENSLEYDALE I. INTRODUCTORY Provisions Article 1 The name of the State shall be the Republic of Wensleydale and the form of government therefore shall be a Republic. All power shall be inherent in, and derive from, the citizens of the State and may not be exercised without their consent. The State and People of Wensleydale hereby formally enshrine "Independence for Wensleydale" as our doctrine and philosophy. Our State pledges to assist oppressed and exploited peoples everywhere who share our struggle. The head of state shall be the President of the Republic of Wensleydale, who shall be democratically elected into office by the people on a yearly basis. The head of government shall be the Prime Minister of the Republic of Wensleydale, who will be chosen and appointed by the President. Article 2 The territory of the State shall be inseparable and unalienable and its borders may not be altered without the consent of the National Assembly. The State shall not lay claim to any territory or property subject to the jurisdiction of a friendly foreign state. The territory of the Republic of Wensleydale shall be the borders below. The Republic may maintain exclaves, which shall consist of any land owned by the government which falls outside the mainland of Wensleydale. Article 3 The Coat of Arms of the Republic of Wensleydale shall be the following: Article 4 The flag of the State shall be a 2:3 verticle rectangular tricolour of red, blue and white, a left-facing black rooster shall occupy the final field. The flag may have gold fringing or tassels if desired. A civil flag without the rooster may also be used for the sake of simplicity. Article 5 Wensleydalian English, the national standard register of English shall serve as second official language of Wensleydale, and shall serve the primary language for communication between the government. The second official language of the state is Wensleydalian Volapük (Eykbaränapük), Minority languages shall be decided on by the government, and may be taken away or added by the government. II. Civil Rights Article 6 Everyone shall be equal in the eyes of the law and enjoy equal protection. No person shall be deprived of their rights, or discriminated, because of their age, sex, colour, language, nationality, religion, sexuality, belief or any other personal feature. Article 7 Everyone shall be entitled to freely speak and write, express their religion and adhere to their national heritage as long as they do not violate the rights of others, insult their dignity or damage their property. Article 8 Everyone shall enjoy the safety of their life and property. No person may be subject to torture, slavery, forced labour or any other cruel or inhuman treatment. Nobody may be deprived of their property without a fair compensation. Article 9 Everyone shall enjoy the privacy of their life, property and means of communication. No involuntary search or seizure may ever take place without a warrant, which shall be issued by either the National Assembly, ruling political party, or the President only upon probable cause that a crime is or was present. Article 10 Every person shall enjoy the freedom of movement, residence and peaceful assembly. Everybody shall be entitled to associate for all purposes which are not punishable by law and enjoy the right to address petitions to the President. Article 11 Everyone shall enjoy the right to obtain the citizenship of the State. Citizenship shall be granted by either the National Assembly or the President and may be involuntarily taken away for various reasons stated in the citizenship act. III. Passage of Laws Article 12 New laws shall be enacted, and those in force amended and repealed by the National Assembly. The national assembly must have a 2/3 vote for a law to be altered, repealed or enacted. Article 13 Every citizen shall enjoy the right to request a referendum from the President and vote thereon. Every voter shall be entitled to cast a single vote. These referendum's are legally binding, although they require approval from the ruling political party. Article 14 The President shall schedule the referendums requested by the citizens. The President may schedule one on his own, but may vote only in order to break a tie. Article 15 The President shall promulgate the laws passed by the Parliament. The President may not refuse to promulgate a law because he did not vote therefor. IV. NATIONAL assembly Article 16 The National Assembly shall be a governing body convened from time to time in order to elect the President and set the policies of the State. All citizens shall enjoy the right to attend the sessions of the Parliament. Article 17 The President shall continue his term until the National Assembly calls for an election. The candidate receiving the most number of votes shall become President. In the case of a tie, new ballots shall be held for the candidates receiving an equal number of votes until one of them is elected. Every citizen over the age of 15, who's been a citizen for over 3 months shall be eligible to serve as President. Article 18 The President shall convene the Parliament, preside over its sessions and take care that the decisions thereof are faithfully executed. No decision may be adopted unless it has received the consent of the majority of the attendees. Article 19 The President shall, with the advice and consent of the Parliament, ratify international treaties, recognise and appoint ambassadors to foreign states and determine the duties and tenure of other public servants. He shall, also, confer medals and rewards. Article 20 Every citizen shall be entitled to impeach the President to the Parliament if he is feared to have breached the Constitution or the law in the performance of his duties. If the Parliament finds him guilty, he shall be dismissed from office. Article 21 If the President is ill or otherwise absent, the Vice-President shall act on his behalf until he returns to office. When the President is dismissed from office, or has resigned, the same citizen shall act as President until the end of the term. V. Redress of Grievances Article 22 The Minister of Justice shall appoint a certain number of judges who shall hear the trials brought for the redress of grievances arising out of the breaches of the laws of the State. Article 23 Every person shall be entitled to appeal any damage, infringement of their rights and other breaches of law to (the judge?). Every crime victim shall enjoy the right to an effective remedy appropriate to the suffered injustice. Article 24 Nobody shall answer for any activity which is not a breach of law nor be subject to a punishment not prescribed by law. Nobody shall answer for any activity committed in self-defence nor be subject to the death penalty as punishment. Article 25 All persons accused of a crime shall be entitled to be confronted with the case against them at a fair and public trial without undue delay. They shall be given a fair chance to defend themselves without having to say, do or confess to anything. They shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Article 26 The judge shall be independent during the course of a trial and bound only by the Constitution, the laws of the State and his conscience. No pressure or other influence may be made neither on his verdicts nor on the trial as a whole. Article 27 The judge shall render his verdicts in the name of the people. All verdicts shall be binding from the day they are rendered and may not be appealed or overturned. VI. Principles of Constitutionality Article 28 The Constitution shall be the supreme law of the State. All laws enacted and policies set by the citizens shall be in accordance with the Constitution. Nobody may be above the Constitution or the laws of the State. Article 29 The President shall render the correct interpretation of the Constitution and coördinate the policies of the State with the provisions thereof. He shall declare a law void if it is not in accordance with the Constitution. Article 30 The President shall exercise his duties conscientiously and impartially. The President shall regularly inform the Parliament about the overall conditions within the State and recommend the consideration of necessary measures. Article 31 The laws of the State shall be published and come into force on the day on which they are promulgated by the President. The law may not prescribe any measure which may not be accomplished or have retroactive effect. Article 32 No taxes shall be levied, nor any money thereby collected spent, except in a manner provided by law. Further more, no war may be fought, nor an army assembled, nor may the State enter into an association, without the consent of the Parliament. VII. Concluding Provisions Article 33 Only the Parliament shall have right to amend the Constitution. If at least two thirds of the parliament voted in favour of the proposal, the Constitution shall thereby be amended. Article 34 The Constitution shall become effective on the day it is enacted on a referendum by the votes of the majority of parliament and may not be suspend. Article 35 In times of emergency, the President may take full control of the state, and rule by decree in order to preserve stability in the country during times of hardship, thus making the constitution temporarily void.